Bought the book in anticipation of being out in that area soon, and after reading the great historical info and seeing the beautiful photos, I can't wait to get out there and see some of the places for myself!

I only wish the maps had been a little more detailed, and that the author could have provided coordinates of the sites from a GPS, to make it easier to get to the locations.

I am a native Californian, although I have lived in Boston for many years. One of the most intriguing parts of California for me has been visiting abandoned and restored pioneer towns in the Golden State. About 70 miles from my first home in San Bernardino, is located an old mining town, Calico, in the middle of the Mojave desert. That town has set my expectations for visiting pioneer towns.

For my 49th birthday, my father and wife arranged for me to have a 49er vacation that included attending a San Francisco 49er football game and then heading off into the gold country to revisit the sites where the great gold rush first began.

From knowing a lot about California history, I knew of many towns and sites that I wanted to see. But along the way, I was intrigued by signs and notes about many sites that I had never heard about before. I wished that I had had along a source as fine as Ghost Towns of Northern California.

Although his book will seem like a coffee table book to some, I found it to be an essential exploration guide. More than 50 towns and sites are described and pictured. Mr. Varney does a fine job of giving you the local history (which often includes how much gold was mined locally and how it was mined) while the photographs give you a sense of what there is to see. You also get maps that can easily be used to find each of these locations. Most are concentrated in the gold areas (such as near the Oregon border, near route 49, and in the high Sierras), but others have different backgrounds and locations such as Alcatraz and China Camp in the San Francisco Bay area.

The author defines a "ghost town" as being a town that has had a large slide in its permanent population, even if it is still populated. So few of these "ghost towns" are uninhabited like Calico was when I was a youngster.

I double checked the accuracy of the information by comparing my experiences on my 49er vacation to what the book says, and the information and views tallied perfectly. Nice job!

The photographs are more realistic than artistic. That is not to say that they are not beautiful in many cases, but they give you a realistic view of what you will see rather than a "sunset at Sedona" feeling.

You probably won't want to visit all of these ghost towns, but the book will help you decide when and where you will want to visit. I strongly urge you to decide to visit the sites that interest you and to use this valuable guide to help you plan and follow through on your plans.

I thought the book is an exceptional value. I would have gladly paid more than twice the asking price for this great resource!

After you finish enjoying the photographs and text, spend some time rereading Mark Twain's stories about the gold camps. It will help you get in the mood for planning a wonderful trip!

Dr. Randy Lee Eickhoff's fifth Ulster Cycle book provides his fans the story of legendary Irish warrior Cuchulainn, who served as the rallying cry for the 1916 rebellion. HE STANDS ALONE is a series of vignettes as opposed to a novel; thus readers obtain more tales, but will find difficulty with the flow and transition between the stories. Each contribution is fascinating on its own so that the book should be treated like a short story collection. The tales involving the hero's warrior training and subsequent battles are exciting and insightful, but it is the romance with Emer that engages the audience. The notes provide scholarly insight for those who enjoy a bit more. Dr. Eickhoff will elate his audience with his latest Ulster tale.

Harriet Klausner

It is extremely difficult for one to become as immersed in a culture as complicated as Ancient Ireland, but I must say that Randy Eickhoff has emerged as what I would call the authority on The Ulster Cycle. The prolegomenons with which he introduces each work in the cycle are succinct observations that are made with the clarity of a seasoned scholar and his treatment of the texts is unique and priceless to the scholar. Eickhoff shows an incredible insight into the language, art form, and historical ambience of the period and is such that I would dearly love to hear him deliver a series of lectures upon this subject. I have heard his lecture on Interpolator H and was mesmorized by his distinct grasp of this complicated problem that exists within corrupted texts. When I accessed the his website and discovered the depth of his scholarship and his extremely prolific output, I was thoroughly amazed. The label "genius" was become too common to use lately but I would not hesitate at all to apply it to Eickhoff and his capabilities as a translator. He is breaking new ground with his intrinsic application of the translator's art and must be admired for his daring and innovation.

Bernard Schopen again does an outstanding job of taking the reader to the Reno, Nevada of PI Jack Ross. The storyline, the twists and turns, and the depiction of the natural beauty of northern Nevada combine to create for the reader an escape to this world. Let's have another one soon, Mr. Schopen!

Bernard Schopen has a superb prose style and a sure eye for the telling detail. His characters are well rounded and his protagonist--the lawyer-detective, Jack Ross--is hard boiled but sensitive, in the tradition of Spenser and Elvis Cole. This excellent novel in an excellent series deserves to be widely read.

I first encountered Lidia Bastianich through the public television program, "New York, The Great Chefs." Ms. Bastianich made Grapes in Grappa. I had never heard of grappa but I knew I wanted to copy that recipe and so I bought the companion book for the series. Many years later, La Cucina di Lidia crossed my hands and I'm glad it did. And not just for the recipes, which are superb. Lidia and I are the same age. While I grew up is a working class suburb in the American Midwest,with its small lots ringed by chainlink fence, Lidia grew up in a country still scarred by WWII. We were not wealthy -- my father, who never went to high school, was a skilled laborer -- but we never had the sort of struggle to put food on the table that Lidia's family had. That struggle and the story of her families immigration is told in this cookbook. And, yes, it is a cookbook, but it is just as interesting as a document of perhaps the "other side" of the Baby Boom generation that has been soundly criticised for materialism and self-indulgence. From generations of Istrian cooks, Lidia learned how to feed a family suberbly. To my Irish and Polish family, the Italian dishes that were making their way into the Midwest in the 1950s were exotic. I remember my mother buying the "spaghetti kit," (can I mention the brand - Chef Boyardee) a yellow, rectangular box in which there was a long, thin box of dry spaghetti, a medium size can of tomato sauce and a small can of grated cheese. When there were only 2 children in the family, we were fed from one box, but as the children grew in size and increased in number, so did the number of boxes it took to feed the family. It was with considerable trepidation that my mother bought her first pound of dry pasta and cans of whole tomatoes and tomato paste and made her first "Italian" dinner from scratch. More than red sauce, this is a wonderful book that captures an era and an area. By the way, Lidia also answers the question of dry v. "fresh" pasta. A great book.

A book close to my heart. My family hails from the island of Krk just south of Istria. As a first generation American I am fortunate to have the flavorings of the Adriatic in my soul and palate. This book literally brought tears to my eyes. My family will have hours of enjoyment from this book. As a fellow child of Astoria,Queens---HVALA LIDIA!!!

The Northern Territory of Australia is one of the world's most facscinating places to visit. Kakadu and Litchfield are superb national parks with stunning landscapes and further south things like Devil's Marbles and Ayers Rock are breathtaking. Of course, the whole journey of about 2500 miles from Darwin to Alice Springs along the Stuart Highway is an adventure.

The LP guide gives a lot of good tips on where to stay and what to see. The information, as usual, is accurate and certainly helps to get around. It contains a lot of interesting "extra" information on things like Aboriginal Art etc.

However, the book misses out on quite a few things which you can see and do in the parks and villages you visit like e.g. the gold digger in Pine Creek who for the "gold museum" in Pine Creek where we could "find" our own gold.

The best thing is to take a couple of books. During the long ride there is plenty of time to read. The LP guide is not an appetite wetter, but it is a very good tool for planning your trip and should not be missed out.

I practically wore this book out during my 2 week trek through "The Top End" - Darwin, Litchfield, Katherine and Kakadu. It was extermely helpful in deciding where to go, what to see, and where to stay. All the supplemental reading was very useful and entertaining as well. Go Lonely Planet!!

"The Morocco Collection" is authentic and accurate. The recipes are easy to follow and have ingredients most of us can find in the US. I really recommend "Moroccan Prawns with Spices". One of the couscous recipes works well with as does bread. The recipe for "Eggplants with Fruited Couscous" is also wonderful. If you're interested in Moroccan cuisine, you'll really appreciate this book.

From fiery chillied fish to cooling, refreshing mint tea the Moroccan Collection by author Hilaire Walden is full of inspiration and atmosphere. The beautiful photos and book layout are evocotive of souk markets with their vibrant colours and aromas but at the same time give clear illustrations of what the food should look like when recreated at home.

The recipes are well laid out with the majority accompanied by a photo. Ingredients are listed in bold type to one side of the page, the method is given in a clear numbered sequence, and best of all most recipes have a short explanation of the dish's history or some background to the ingredients. Ingredients used are those found easily in the west and explanations of traditional methods are given when they are no longer necessary to acheive the desired results today - for instance when using 'instant' couscous. Walden has also adapted the recipes, when necessary, to suit a western palate for example reducing the amount of oil used traditionally in some recipes. No Moroccan book worth its salt would be without lots of lamb and seafood (of many varieties) and chicken recipes, but there are also lots of grain and vegetable dishes and some luscious middle eastern sweets. Yummy!

Sit back with this book and soak up the atmosphere - or - head straight for your (better equipped than the Moroccan home) kitchen and whip up a dinner of nutty couscous and rice salad accompanied by saffron chicken with apricots.

As a 27 year resident of Northern California, I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by some of the trails I found in this book. The trail coverage is broad as Northern California is not a small place. This book outlines some of the best trails throughout Santa Cruz, San Jose, San Franciso, and all the way up to the California-Oregon border. I look forward to riding some of the far Northern California trails that are outlined in this book.

This book covers Northern California trails in pretty good detail. The book does a good job of covering the famous trails and covering some less well known backcountry trails that even locals may not know about. The directions to the trail heads are usually pretty good. The trail directions are sometimes out of date and a little vague, but usually good enough to keep from getting lost. Overall, I definitely recommed it!

I recently used this book (July 1998) for places to stay and to eat in Carmel, San Francisco and Sonoma/Napa Valleys. The book had excellent recommendations for dining and for lodging that were unique, one of a kind, some eclectic, and/or places with atmosphere. I would highly recommend this guidebook and will investigate whether this author has other books on different regions of the country.

I moved to Northern California in 1991, and have been buying the latest version of this book every time it is updated. It pays for itself in one outing! My partner and I have discovered a WORLD of wonderful places to stay-from the cheap to the luxe-and found some excellent restaurants in some otherwise "doggy" locations. We enjoy and use the book SO much-we now buy 2 copies-one for home, to plan trips and one for the car-in case we find ourselves hungry and/or in need of lodging in unfamiliar territory. This book is a must for anyone who likes traveling, exploring or just finding a damned fine place to eat or sleep in just about any town(including your own!) in Northern California. Ms. Poole-I salute you!

This book has helped me make the transition to gardening in the Central Valley. Besides being a new gardener, I'm also new to the Sacramento area. Northern California Gardening explains plant care clearly and includes a lot of recommendations for plants that thrive in the different NorCal micro-climates.

Because there's a limit to how much the book can cover, some subjects aren't explained as thoroughly as a beginner (like me) needs, but it provides me with a good starting point.

I love that the book is divided up by the different months of the year, specifying what tasks I need to consider during each month. It gets me excited about what gardening I will be doing in a few months' time.

While there are many guides to Bay Area Gardening, those of us in Zone 14 (Sacramento) are usually busy trying to translate instructions for a dramatically different climate to our own gardening needs.

This book is an indispensable guide for ALL Northern Californians. Month-by-month the author tells us what all gardeners should be doing, then has specific recommendations for Central Valley, Mountain, and Coastal gardeners. Each month also includes great advice on pest control (she favors gentle methods), planting, pruning, and what is usually available at local nurseries.

This guide is especially good for people who are new to Northern CA, and are in garden shock. When I moved from Zone 4 to Zone 14 it was the first book I purchased and it was a real life saver (the plants's lives, that is!)

Dennis Boyer compiles an excellent collection of shorts in which he explores the "ghost stories" of Northern Wisconsin. I say "ghost stories" very loosely because rather than present the standard stories as most writers, Boyer also provides a glimpse at the culture and feel of the area.

Each story is filled with details about it's source and the area in which it is taking place. It is a must to read this book with a regional atlas to follow along with his travels.

Perhaps the most compelling part of Boyer's book is his choice to leave most of the stories open ended. Boyer does not reveal his personal reaction to his experiences and leaves it to the reader to explore the region for themselves.

"Northern Frights" is an excelent look at the Ghost Stories of the Wisconsin North Woods, but one that also gives you a deffinate feel for the culture of the area described. From the Ghost Snowmobiler to the paranoia of the Ghost Ranger or the Skeleton Mound, this book details everything. And, perhapse the most frightening parts of this boo kat the segments that seem to compliment one another when the differant interview subjects do not know one another. this book kept me up late at night from both fright as well as deep interest.